Combat Jack: We couldn’t end this year right without having the G.O.A.T. on. How he survived an abusive upbringing, studied his craft with early rap pioneers in the same rap dojo with Kool G. Rap, becoming the foundation stone that became Def Jam, building with Queens’ street legends, battling this rapper, that rapper and Jay [cont.]

All relatively recent missteps aside, LL Cool J is one of the most celebrated names in hip-hop, with almost three decades in the game and a dozen albums under his belt. He’s on the short list when it comes to longevity and successfully parleying rap prowess and personality into a multi-platform career. Authentic, his thirteenth [cont.]

Update: CDQ, tagless version added. 6/4/13: Action Bronson stopped in Funk Flex’s show last night, to debut his new LL featured remix of the track, paying homage to EPMD’s original “Rampage”. Bonus, Action spits a freestyle in the video clip below.

Update: Apologies to DJ Premier for mislabeling him as a producer on this track. The file sent to us was mislabeled, and that was unauthentic! LL Cool J teams with DJ Premier on this new track from Authentic, which drops this week.

LL Cool J has scrapped his previous version of his album, Authentic Hip-Hop, and has instead decided to release, Authentic, which features an altered tracklist, title, and cover artwork. Look for this April 30th. 1. Bath Salt 2. Not Leaving You Tonight (ft. Fitz and the Tantrums & Eddie Van Halen) 3. New Love (ft. [cont.]

Rap nerds unite. Each LL Cool J, Ice Cube, Public Enemy, De La Soul and DJ Z-Trip will come together for the Kings Of The Mic Tour, a 26-date U.S. excursion that sounds ripped from the 80′s. Yes, we will definitely be there. LL Cool J w/ DJ Z-Trip, Public Enemy, Ice Cube, & De [cont.]